The CPUT was born out of a merger of the erstwhile Cape Technikon and the Peninsula Technikon on 1 January 2005. The institution comprises of six campuses across the province with an estimated population of 32 000 students currently enrolled. The demographics of the institution in terms of its student population reflect the picture of the racial profile of the population, with 80% black students the majority of whom are funded through the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). The academic staff are predominantly white males occupying the middle management level with a diminutive proportion of black women.